Tasting Through New Liberty Distillery’s Spirited Repertoire

In Part 1 of my New Liberty adventure, I took you through a behind-the-scenes tour of this up-and-coming Philadelphia distillery located in the Old Kensington neighborhood. At the end of the tour I enjoyed a full tasting experience that encompassed New Liberty’s vodka and whiskeys as well as its revived Kinsey brand of signature blended whiskeys.

First Taste: New Liberty Vodka and White Whiskeys

New Liberty Sam Schmidt

I started with New Liberty’s Rye Vodka, which Sam Schmidt, the company’s dedicated mixologist, referred to as a whiskey drinker’s vodka. Although most distillers try to eliminate as much flavor as possible from their vodkas to make them neutral, New Liberty has created a full-flavored vodka. I am not a huge vodka fan, but I loved that I could taste the grain and the spicy rye finish.

The New Liberty White Whiskeys were the next to sample. They were somewhat similar in flavor, which was shocking because one version has 35 more proof than the other. The white whiskey was interesting and definitely an improvement on some of the white whiskeys I have had in the past. These white whiskeys almost reminded me of a whiskey mixed with a tequila.

The Kinsey Revival

new liberty kinsey silver

Next, I tried New Liberty’s Kinsey brand whiskeys, a revival of spirits first distilled in Linfield, Pa., before Prohibition. Starting with the 7-Year-Old Whiskey, I found the sample to be super smooth with nice honey and vanilla flavors and aromas. It has the smoothness of an Irish or Canadian whiskey, but with a much bolder flavor. 

After that came the Kinsey Rye Whiskey. This revival has an abundance of that great rye spice in the flavor as well as some floral notes and a subtle hint of oak. The third regular strength Kinsey whiskey I tried was the 99-proof Kinsey Bourbon Whiskey, which had great oak and vanilla flavor up front followed by a slight herbal finish.

I also got to sample Kinsey’s Cask Strength 7-Year-Old Whiskey and Cask Strength Rye Whiskey. Both of these high-strength versions weigh in at 115 proof. I expected the Cask Strength 7-Year-Old Whiskey to be pretty similar to the original, but just have a stronger honey and vanilla flavors. I was surprised when I tasted it and the honey and vanilla flavors were accompanied by a strong floral flavor that I didn’t notice with the lower proof version. The floral flavor really paired nicely with the honey and vanilla notes.

The Cask Strength Rye Whiskey was similar to the lower proof version with a stronger presence of spice, white pepper and floral flavors. Even though both of the cask strength whiskeys are 115 proof, I would have never known from the taste.

Cocktail Time

You may be thinking that I’d sampled everything New Liberty had to offer and the tour must have ended at this point. If so, you are mistaken. With a talented mixologist on staff like Schmidt, I had to test out how these great spirits taste in mixed drinks. Schmidt’s cocktails are special because of how seriously he takes his craft. Most of the ingredients he uses in his mixes (besides the liquor and fruit) are created by hand. He makes his own flavored syrups and shrubs from scratch and tests his creations in his home kitchen. Just like New Liberty’s master distiller Robert Cassell and assistant distiller Dave Pie, Schmidt puts in the utmost care and labor into his cocktails because it is what he is passionate about.

The first drink was Just Like Mama Used to Make. This drink was a mix of the Kinsey Bourbon, apple Thai chai tea, lemon and Angostura bitters. I loved this drink, especially the way the citrus and apple paired with herbal notes in the bourbon and chai tea.

Next up was An Affair to Remember. This drink utilized the Kinsey Rye with cranberry, fresh-crushed black pepper, black walnut bitters and orange. I have to admit, this is the first beverage I have ever enjoyed with black pepper in it. It provided a slight bite with the bitters to balance out the sweetness of the cranberry and orange, while also bringing out the rye spice.

My third cocktail was the Mango Only Pawn … in Game of Life. This was a mix of the New Liberty Rye Vodka, pineapple mango shrub, ancho chili, lemon and cilantro. If this sounds like an odd assortment of ingredients to you, don’t worry—it does to me, too. I’m not a fan of chili peppers and I never imagined cilantro in my mixed drink, but this drink was great. Schmidt’s greatest strength is in finding ingredients that most would never think go together and making them work in proper harmony. He also taught me that a shrub is a simple syrup made with vinegar instead of water.

The final cocktail was Where There’s Smoke, There’s Fire. This included Kinsey’s 7-Year-Old Whiskey, smoked Lapsang tea, caramelized Earl Grey tea, Cynar and lemon. This drink was phenomenal and was probably my favorite of the whole bunch. I actually enjoyed the intense smoky flavor of the smoked Lapsang tea so much that I went out and bought a tin of it after my tour. This drink brought honey, vanilla and lemon flavors layered over top of herbal, earthy and smoky flavors from the teas. This drink will definitely remind you of relaxing next to a roaring campfire.

How to Stock Up on New Liberty

Currently, New Liberty sells three liquors: Rye Vodka (made with 100% malted rye), 80 proof White Whiskey and 115-proof White Whiskey. Because it is a relatively new distillery, most of the liquor New Liberty produces is still aging in barrels until it is ready to bottle. One of the distillery’s major focuses will be on creating a steady rotation of one-off bottle releases. These unique and often experimental spirits will be sold directly from the distillery on a limited basis. When I asked Pie what ideas they had for future creations, he rattled off a full list of liquors, including applejack, peach brandy, blackberry liqueur and bourbon roasted chestnut liqueur.

The tasting room also has a full selection of New Liberty and Kinsey spirits for sale to take home. When New Liberty starts releasing its limited small-batch, one-off liquors, they will only be sold in the distillery.

The Kinsey line is currently available in approximately 200 Wine and Spirits stores across the state. The New Liberty line is available in 10 Wine and Spirits stores across the state.

new liberty still

Tours are available every Saturday at 1 p.m., 3 p.m. and 5 p.m., as well as Sunday at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. The standard tour costs $10 and the VIP tour costs $20. The standard tour includes samples of the Kinsey 7-Year-Old Whiskey, Kinsey Rye Whiskey and Kinsey Bourbon Whiskey. The VIP tour adds samples of the two cask-strength Kinsey whiskeys, the full New Liberty line and an engraved Glencairn whiskey glass to take home. Note: buy your tickets online before you go.  

Be sure to follow New Liberty Distillery on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. You can also find more information on the New Liberty website.

Find New Liberty Distillery at 1431 N. Cadwallader St., Philadelphia; phone: (800) 996-0595.

  • Photos: Arne Morin